Call for Submission

2-5 images representing a recent body of work or a specific project. Digital image files must have a resolution of greater than 300 dpi, and should be uploaded via Google Drive or Dropbox and share the link to the folder.

Video Submission should be sent as a link to a hosted site (YouTube, Vimeo)

Include an Artwork List indicating artist name, title, medium, dimension and year

A maximum of one-page artist statement

A maximum of one-page curriculum vitae, resume or biography

Optional supporting materials (web links, reviews, catalogue, etc.)

Transience is the only constant thing in a world that is always in motion. Any value, even pushed to its extreme, contains the seed of its opposite. As children and teenagers, our identity is progressively formed when we detach ourselves from our parents, mark personal boundaries, and learn to respect the boundaries of other people. Yet as adults we often find ourselves striving to regain the feeling of integrity (attachment) with our desires and our surroundings we had in childhood. This tension can cause us to appraise and question the fluidity of our interaction with reality, and so has always been a bountiful source of material for artists.

In the de-attachment project, we suggest that participants consider three questions we all regularly face in our lives:

Who are we? The majority of contemporary art practices evolved or underwent significant changes in the 1960s and 1970s, when postmodernism was at its peak. Herbert Marcuse characterized this period as the epoch of ‘The Great Refusal’―a time when cultural and political developments were driven by underground tendencies and rooted in a desire to resist (detach from) the influence of institutions, the media, and other forms of systematic control. The counterculture positioned itself as a critical alternative, though its products were gradually absorbed (attached) into mainstream culture as their popularity grew. The pendulum, however, always sways back, and then comes the time to determine which side of the cultural barricades contemporary art stands on.

Who are they? Our thinking is inevitably dichotomic: identifying ourselves with certain ideas also means facing the contrary side―the ‘Other.’ Art can bridge (attach) the gap, providing a voice to the voiceless, overcoming labels and stigma; yet it can also generate and enforce stereotypes, becoming an instrument of repression and division (detachment).What message is nestled in our art? Who does it represent? Who does it speak to?

Who am I?These dualistic concerns also arise on an individual level, as it comes to our relations with other people, with our own living experience, and even with machines. (The latter being especially timely considering the increasing effect of technical innovations on our lives.) Should we resist, collaborate with others, ignore our differences? The final aim of the exhibition is to show that distance (physical/cultural/ mental) is essential in finding powerful artistic manifestations. We don’t have to fight or to establish new borders. Instead, we can accept our differences and turn them into tools for creating something New. All in all, as American novelist Tom Robbins wrote, ‘Our similarities bring us to a common ground; our differences allow us to be fascinated by each other.’

We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.